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/HAT ABOUT MEXICO? 



By George H. Brewer 



1. 



HISTORICAL 
REVIEW. 




^^^^ Question. 

^^p What can you 

^r tell us about 

i«- early Mexico? 

Answer. Many 
students believe 
that the early 
story of Mexico 
was contempo- 
raneous with 
Egypt. There 
is much evi- 
dence to confirm that belief. Here we 
find mighty pyramids, colossal stone 
statues of grotesque form, ruins of 
buried cities several square miles in 
extent, ornaments of fine-beaten goldj 
hieroglyphics of unknown origin and 
meaning, and remnants of splendid 
monuments showing architectural skill 
scarcely surpassed in modern times. 
The aboriginal inhabitants, the Mayas. 
Toltecs and Aztecs, in turn, have left 
records of an advanced civilization which 
existed centuries before Columbus dis- 
covered America. There were schools, 
courts of justice, civil codes, laws gov- 
erning lands, systems of taxation, public 
highways, libraries and a thousand other 
indications of a highly developed life. 

Question. What became of this early 
Mexican civilization? 

Answer. Hernando Cortez, with a 
band of about 500 intrepid Spanish ad- 
venturers, made sad havoc of Mexico's 
government and civilization. He waged 
a war of conquest, despoiling and de- 
stroying whatever he found in his path. 
He determined to make of Mexico a 
"new Spain," and indeed so it was called. 
For 300 years (1521-1821) Mexico was 
ruled by the viceroys sent from Spain. 
Their rule, with but few exceptions, was 
cruel and bloody. The Indians were 
reduced to abject slavery, their lands 
despoiled, their wealth taken from them, 
and hundreds of thousands perished by 
the sword. Associated with the viceroys 
were Spanish priests and monks, who 
supplanted the superstitious religion of 
the Aztecs with an admixture of pagan- 
ism and Christianity, resulting in a type 
of religion common to all Latin- 
America, which more nearly resembles 
the former than the latter. 



Question. When and how did the 
rule of the viceroys and priests come 
to an end? 

Answer. The Mexicans struck their 
first blow for independence in 1810. 
During the following eleven years the 
struggle continued with varying success. 
Many of the leaders, like Hidalgo and 
Morelos, were captured and shot as 
trouble makers, but "victory perched 
upon their banners" at last, and in 1821 
Mexico threw off the Spanish yoke for- 
ever. The first attempts at government 
were fraught with disaster. From 1821 
to 1847 there were no less than twenty- 
four changes of government, and every 
one of them brought about by violence. 
Long years of internal strife and chaos 
culminated in a war with the United 
States (1846-1847). 

Question. Tell us something about 
the outcome of that war. 

Answer. One outcome of that war 
was the acquirement by the United 
States of over 900,000 square miles of 
Mexican territory. The vast region em- 
bracing Texas, New Mexico, part of 
Colorado, Utah, Arizona and California 
became ,United States soil. Incidentally 
the acquisition of this vast region led to 
the discovery of gold in California. This 
fact has powerfully affected the finances 
of the world. The wonderful and rapid 
development of the mighty empire 
acquired by the United States through 
the Mexican war has promoted Anglo- 
Saxon supremacy, and the whole cause 
of Christianity has received a great 
impulse as a consequence. 

Question. Is Mexico a republic, and 
when did its real progress begin? 

Ansiver. Mexico nominally is a re- 
public. It has a constitution patterned 
largely after our own. It elects its 
President, State Governors, National 
House of Congress and a National Sen- 
ate. Its present constitution was adopted 
in 1857, under the leadership of the 
famous liberal, Benito Juarez (Wah- 
ress). He declared that Mexico could 
not take her proper place among the 
family of nations until the shackles of 
Roman Catholic domination were broken 
from the limbs of the enslaved nation. 
His cry was "Separation of Church and 
State." At first his movement gained 
great headway and was very popular, 
but the intriguing Jesuits soon found a 









way to block the wheels of progress. 
Napoleon III, then Emperor of France, 
influenced by the Pope at Rome, under- 
took to establish a Mexican Empire. 
The dream of the Jesuits was to secure 
a repeal of the reform laws passed under 
Juarez. To re-establish the rule of the 
church in Mexican affairs, Maximilian, 
an Austrian archduke, was chosen to 
lead the invasion. Napoleon III sent 
his troops to enforce the demands. The 
invaders arrived in Mexico with the 
Pope's blessing in 1864. The interven- 
tion lasted three years. Juarez, driven 
into exile on the northern frontier, was 
at last encouraged by Abraham Lincoln, 
our immortal President, who never rec- 
ognized Maximilian. He then undertook 
to gather together his shattered forces 
and begin once more the struggle for 
freedom and independence of Roman 
Catholic domination. Secretary Seward 
warned Napoleon III that French troops 
must be withdrawn from Mexico. This 
led to the downfall of Maximilian, who 
was executed in 1867 at Queretaro. 

Question. What more can you tell 
us about Juarez? 

Answer. Benito Juarez was a native 
of Oaxaca (Wah-hac-ka). He was a 
full-blooded Zapotecan Indian. He could 
not speak the Spanish language until 
after he was fourteen years old. He 
was possessed of remarkable ability and 
character. He became a leader in his 
own State and soon rose to be a general 
in the army and served his State as 
Governor. In 1858 he became President 
of the republic. He it was who led 
the people in their war against the 
Roman Catholic hierarchy. He pro- 
claimed religious liberty, and invited 
Protestantism to begin its propaganda in 
Mexico. He said shortly before his 
death in 1872: "The future of my 
country depends upon the success of 
Protestant missions." His name is a 
synonym for all that is high and noble 
in statesmanship. His name is enrolled 
with honor in the hearts of all patriotic 
Mexicans. 

Question. Who was Porfirio Diaz? 

Answer. He was a Mexican states- 
man, patriot, leader and President. To 
him, more than to any other man, 
Mexico owes her great material advance- 
ment during the last three decades. Dur- 
ing his term of office he established the 
country's finances on a sound basis. He 
opened the mines, built the railroads and, 
so far as material progress is concerned, 
he transformed a nation. He encouraged 
industry and education, and his benevo- 
lent rule made possible an independent. 



self-supporting, self-respecting and intel- 
ligent middle class, and that is the hope 
of any nation. Some criticise him for 
doing so little for the Indians; others 
hold him mainly responsible for the 
perpetuation of the feudal land system ; 
while still others blame his administra- 
tion for the thousand ills which cul- 
minated in the revolution of 1910, the 
end of which we cannot at this time 
foresee. Whatever the truth may be 
concerning these grave charges laid 
against the administration of Porfirio 
Diaz, the fact still stands out clear that 
he ranks among Mexico's great men and 
deserves a place among the world's 
ablest statesmen. 

2. MATERIAL DEVELOPMENT 
AND PRESENT TENDENCIES 
IN GOVERNMENT. 

Question. How large is Mexico? 

Answer. Mexico covers an area of 
767,000 square miles. If this were 
spread out over the map of the United 
States it would almost cover everything 
east of the Mississippi River. Its 
greatest length is 1,950 miles, its great- 
est width being 750 miles. At the 
Isthmus of Tehuantepec it narrows down 
to a strip of territory less than 100 
miles in width from ocean to ocean. 

Question. What about the mines in 
Mexico? 

Answer. One-third the world's output 
of silver comes from Mexico. Even in 
revolutionary times the annual output of 
silver is upward of $50,000,000. When 
peace and security are restored this will 
be increased by 100 per cent. Mexico 
is also rich in gold, lead, copper, zinc, 
quicksilver and many more rare and 
precious metals. 

Question. What other signs of mod- 
ern progress are to be found in Mexico? 

Answer. Mexico, during the last 
twenty years of the administration of 
Porfirio Diaz, made rrtore rapid progress 
in industry, railroad building, docks and 
warehouses, mining and agriculture than 
any other country on the face of the 
globe. Another notable enterprise suc- 
cessfully launched during that period 
was the drainage canal, from the center 
of the valley of Mexico, through the 
rock-ribbed mountains surrounding the 
valley, one tunnel being over six miles 
in length, and finally letting the vast 
waste water flow uninterruptedly toward 
the Gulf of Mexico. This gigantic pro- 
ject cost $25,000,000 to complete, and 
required many years of patient toil. 



'• Hi 



Pulque (pool-kay), the fermented juice 
of the maguey plant, a terrible intoxi- 
cant, and consumed largely by the poor 
and ignorant, was for a time prohibited 
by the de facto government, but for 
some reason the prohibition was sud- 
denly removed and the terrible evils of 
former days were again apparent. In 
Mexico City over 30,000 persons are 
arrested each year for intoxication. The 
daily consumption of pulque in the 
federal district exceeds 25,000 gallons. 



3. THE RELIGIOUS SIDE OF THE 
MEXICAN PROBLEM. 

Question. What do we know about 
Mexico's earlier religious history? 

Answer. The early religion of Mexico 
was polytheistic idolatry, or the worship 
of many gods. The Aztecs had over 
200 deities, to whom they paid homage. 
Their images were hideously grotesque, 
not unlike those found in India and 
Africa. They built temples, with an 
altar for human sacrifice. They had 
convents and monasteries with many 
ceremonies very similar to those of the 
Roman Catholic system ; indeed, the 
proselyting priests, who swarmed every- 
where during the Spanish conquest, had 
no difficulty in making converts ; for the 
ignorant Indians simply added to the 
number of their gods by adopting the 
new images introduced by Rome. 

Question. What is the record of 
Roman Catholicism in Mexico? 

Answer. The whole history of Mexico, 
from the coming of the Spaniards to the 
present day, is saturated with intrigues 
and oppressions practised by Rome. The 
Spanish inquisition set up in Mexico, 
presided over by priests and monks, 
disposed of thousands of heretics and 
troublesome patriots. 

A foolish story of a miraculous appari- 
tion of the Virgin Mary to an Indian 
on a hillside near Mexico City was 
propagated to deceive the credulous, and 
to this day the Virgin of Guadaloupe 
(Wad-a-lo6-pee) is venerated by the 
ignorant Indians as their goddess or 
patroness. 

Ingeniously contrived images, which 
can shed tears, increase in size, move 
their limbs, wink their eyes, etc., are 
set up and a miracle proclaimed, to 
deceive the faithful and incidentally to 
reap a financial harvest for the attend- 
ant priest. A few years ago the authori- 
ties had to intervene and expose a fraud 
of that kind when a certain image was 
reported to be shedding tears of blood. 



It did shed tears of blood all right, but 
a rubber bag filled with the blood of a 
freshly killed kid, having two tiny rub- 
ber tubes leading to the eyes of the 
image, upon a slight pressure admin- 
istered at a distance and from a hidden 
position, did the trick. 

Roman Catholicism in Mexico has 
been a failure so far as benefiting the 
masses of Mexicans is concerned. A 
monk who accompanied the French mili- 
tary forces when they invaded Mexico 
in 1864 wrote his observations of the 
church as follows : "Mexican faith is 
a dead faith. The church here fills no 
mission of virtue, no mission of mercy^ 
no mission of charity. Virtue cannot 
exist in its pestiferous atmosphere." 
This is a Catholic verdict uttered by 
Abbe Domenech. This is also the ver- 
dict of every unprejudiced observer of 
Mexico. 

Question. What is the record of 
Protestantism in Mexico? 

Answer. Protestant missions are com- 
paratively new in Mexico. Its record 
scarcely covers fifty years, and yet dur- 
ing that time it has had a marked 
influence on the life and progress of 
the country. Under its stimulus and 
through its schools the rate of illiteracy 
has been brought down from 94 per 
cent, to about 70 per cent. The morals 
and education of the Catholic clergy 
have been elevated. Persecution, which 
at first caused the death of several 
martyrs, is gradually subsiding. The 
new government, which is now in power, 
recognized the valuable contribution 
which Protestantism has made to the 
progress and betterment of Mexico. 
Some of the members of Mr. Carranza's 
official family are Protestants. What- 
ever government comes into power in 
Mexico will doubtless give due recogni- 
tion to the new force which is at work, 
and Protestantism will occupy a promi- 
nent place as a powerful factor in 
making and sustaining peaceful pursuits. 
There are said to be upward of 100,000 
Protestant adherents in Mexico, and 
without exception they belong to the 
middle and progressive class. 

Some changes are contemplated in 
Mexico's constitution, but there is one 
clause which will not be changed, and 
that clause reads: "The State and the 
Church are independent of each other. 
The Congress may not pass laws estab- 
lishing or prohibiting any religion." 

This is in hearty accord with our 
great Baptist principle of absolute sepa- 
ration of Church and State. To us 
Mexico's door stands wide open. 



4. BAPTIST MISSIONS AND RE- 
SPONSIBILITIES IN MEXICO. 

Question. What was the first Protes- 
tant work to be established in Mexico? 

Answer. A Baptist missionary by the 
name of Rev. Santiago Hickey, of 
Brownsville, Tex., entered Mexico in 
1860, and two years later founded what 
eventually became the First Baptist 
Church of Monterey. 

Question. What was the first mis- 
sion board to undertake work in Mexico? 

Answer. The American Baptist Home 
Mission Society appointed Rev. Thomas 
M. Westrup as its first missionary in 
1870, and has been carrying on work 
continuously since that date. 

Question. What has been the progress 
of the work? 

Answer. Most gratifying. From the 
small beginning in Monterey the work 
spread into no less than twenty-one other 
States, the Foreign Mission Board of 
the Southern Baptist Convention sharing 
with the American Baptist Home Mis- 
sion Society the responsibility of caring 
for so vast a field. To-day there are no 
less than seventy-five Baptist churches, 
with a combined membership of nearly 
4,000. There are over 2,500 children in 
Sunday School and 1,500 children being 
educated In our Baptist mission schools. 

Question. What more can you tell 
us about our mission schools In Mexico? 
Answer. The schools In Mexico, In 
the fields occupied by the missionaries of 
the Northern Baptist Convention, are 
sustained by the Woman's American 
Baptist Home Mission Society as 
follows: Children 

Enrolled 

Monterey 280 

Mexico City 175 

Guadaloupe 40 

Puebla 336 

Puebla (San Antonio Mission) . .226 
This makes a total of 1,057 children 
in these five schools. The Woman's 
Society employs a teaching force of 
twenty-one, and sufficient tuition Is 
received at these various schools to 
employ no less than six other helpers 
in the lower classes. 

Question. How has the war Iii 
Mexico affected our work? 

Answer. It has been necessary sev- 
eral times to remove our American 
workers and their families to places of 
safety during the periods of pronounced 
disturbance, but fortunately the mis- 
sionary work Itself has suffered but 
little. In fact, on some fields the work 



has grown to such proportions that we 
can no longer accommodate the crowds 
that are anxious to hear the gospel 
preached. This is particularly true in 
Mexico City, San Luis Potosi, Tampico 
and Puebla. In Mexico City, under the 
vigorous leadership of Rev, A. B. iDe 
Roos, a converted Jew from Holland, 
who has had a remarkable career as an 
evangelist in Central America, the 
church has received no less than 200 
new members since January, 1916, all 
of them from the better class of people, 
such as teachers, merchants, clerks, 
bookkeepers and government employees. 
Mr. De Roos is preaching the gospel 
to about 1,000 each Sunday. We have 
over 450 children in our five Sunday 
Schools In Mexico City. 

QuESTIO^f. What else can you tell us 
about the most Interesting fields? 

Answer. The majority of our churches 
are in the northeastern part of Mexico, 
In the States of Nuevo Leon and 
Tamaulipas. In these two States we 
have seventeen churches and nine out- 
stations. 

Question. In what other States does 
The American Baptist Home Mission 
Society have its work established? 

Answer, In San Luis Potosi, Agua- 
scalientes, Mexico, Federal District, 
Morelos, Puebla and Oaxaca. In all of 
these we have work In the capital cities 
and Itinerate from those centers to the 
surrounding territory. 

Question. Give a summary of the 
work of the Home Mission Society for 
the past year (1916). 

Answer. Present number of churches, 
24; number of outstatlons, 26; number 
of English-speaking missionaries, 4; num- 
ber of Spanish-speaking and native mis- 
sionaries, 22; number of baptisms during 
the year, 186 ; present membership in 
churches, 1,428; contribution for all work 
(estimated). United States currency, 
$2,500; present number of chapels, 11; 
present number of Sunday Schools, 40; 
number of pupils enrolled, 1,450. In 
years gone by the Foreign Board of the 
Southern Baptist Convention established 
a denominational printing house in Leon. 
The Home Mission Society at about the 
same time established a theological 
school at Monterey. Recently both 
boards entered into a co-operative agree- 
ment with relation to both of these 
Institutions. This makes unnecessary a 
duplication In our Baptist work in Mex- 
ico. All the Baptist churches of Mexico 
have formed a National Baptist Conven- 
tion, which meets annually. 



This, together with a magnificent water- 
supply system, bringing the pure and 
abundant streams of Xhochimilco (So- 
che-mil-co) into the capital city, has 
wrought wonders in bettering health con- 
ditions and freed the whole regions sur- 
rounding from the plagues which for- 
merly made Mexico City a center of 
disease and death. Mexico is covered 
with a network of railways, with a total 
mileage of 15,000. There are 45,000 
miles of telegraph lines and over 3,000 
postoffices. Mexico has numerous places 
of interest for travelers; a great variety 
of climates, ranging from the heat of 
the tropical jungles on both coasts to 
the chilly blasts of zero weather on the 
mountain tops. For beauty of scenery 
she cannot be surpassed by any country 
in the world. 

Question. Can you tell us something 
about the population of Mexico? 

Answer. The census of 1910, the last 
taken, gave Mexico a population of 
16,000,000. The races are divided as 
follows: 39 per cent, are of pure Indian 
blood, 43 per cent, mixed, or "mestizos," 
and the remaining 18 per cent, are whites 
and foreigners. It will be seen at a 
glance that Mexico is overwhelmingly 
Indian. Many of the interior tribes still 
live in their primitive state, preserving 
to this day the habits, customs and 
dialects of their forefathers. The middle 
class, to which reference is made in a 
foregoing paragraph, is made up largely 
from the "mestizos," or mixed races. 
They easily become skilled artisans. 
They are quick to learn the better way 
to do things, especially when they learn 
how well it pays. The pure-blooded 
Indian, on the other hand, is steadier 
and more dependable. He will do more 
work through longer hours for less pay 
than his brother, through whose veins 
there flows some foreign blood. The 
largest city in the republic is the capi- 
tal, Mexico Citv, with a population of 
about 500,000. Next to Mexico City 
comes Puebla, with 125,000; then fol- 
lows Guadalajara (Wadal-a-hah-ra) with 
110,000. The remaining cities in their 
order are as follows: Monterey, 75.000; 
Leon, 70,000; San Luis Potosi, 60.000; 
Merida, 60.000; Oaxaca, 45,000; Chihua- 
hua, 38,000; Aguascalientes, 35,000; 
Queretaro. 35.000; Saltillo, 30,000; Tor- 
reon, 35,000; Toluca, 35.000; Tampico, 
30,000, and several other cities of 
importance. 

Question. What are the present-day 
conditions? 

Answer. Owing to the long-continued 
civil strife, the masses of people are 



reduced to penury and suffering. Busi- 
ness and industry of all kinds have been 
hard hit by the revolution. Mines and 
factories, railroads, agriculture and en- 
terprises of various kinds have found it 
necessary to suspend operations. The 
rich people have either lost all they 
had or they have been driven into exile. 
It is thought by close students of the 
Mexican problems that if peace and 
security were assured it would not take 
Mexico very long to regain her former 
prosperity. It is a country of vast 
natural resources, as yet but partially 
developed, and a few years of peace will 
work wonders in effacing the ugly scars 
made by the war. The people of Mexico 
are by nature kind, polite and hospitable. 
Education and moral stamina, which only 
the gospel of Christ can supply, will be 
the leavening influence to lift them to 
a higher plane. More Bibles and less 
bullets is Mexico's crying need. 

Question. What about education and 
public morals in Mexico? 

Answer. Unfortunately the rate of 
illiteracy in Mexico is very high. About 
70 per cent, of its inhabitants can neither 
read nor write. This is due in a large 
measure to the dominant ecclesiastical 
system which has always kept the 
masses of people in ignorance, denying 
to the poor even the rudiments of an 
education. The Roman Catholic church 
is bitterly opposed to lay education, and 
denies to the State the right to have a 
public-school system unless the same is 
placed in the hands of priests and nuns. 
In spite of this opposition many liberal- 
minded statesmen in Mexico, aided by 
the growing Protestant sentiment through- 
out the country, have encouraged the 
establishment of public schools, and in 
the larger centers of population there 
are many well-equipped schools. How- 
ever, in the rural districts, where 90 
per cent, of Mexico's population reside, 
very little has been done toward the 
education of the children. Moral stand- 
ards are low. Open gambling is per- 
mitted. Until recently lotteries in al- 
most every State absorbed about 20 
per cent, of the wages of the poor. 
Sunday is the great day of sport. Every- 
thing in the way of diversion and amuse- 
ment is reserved for Sunday. Bull 
fights, with all their demoralizing tend- 
encies, are weekly occurrences, although 
it should be stated that a recent decree 
published by the de facto government 
forbids bull fights throughout the re- 
public. This decree is only transitory, 
and not until national legislation is 
enacted can it be said that bull fighting 
has been abolished. 



Question. What other outstanding 
feature can you mention? 

Answer. Our medical missions. A 
few years ago we had nothing of the 
kind in Mexico. A volunteer medical 
missionary, Dr. C. E. Conwell, offered 
his services to the Home Mission Society 
as an experiment. His work grew from 
the start. Scores have been brought 
into the church in Mexico City as a 
direct outcome of Dr. Conwell's work. 
He has treated no less than 5,000 
patients in a single year, and all this 
without adequate equipment or hospital. 
Three years ago, through the muni- 
ficence of a Baptist layman in Con- 
necticut, money was provided for a 
hospital. By the providence of God 
and the aid of many interested friends 
we have at last secured a splendid plant 
in the city of Puebla, which is now 
altered to adapt it for hospital purposes, 
and have equipped it with as complete 
and perfect equipment as could be se- 
cured. This plant will be ready for 
inauguration as soon as the troubled 
conditions subside. In this hospital we 
have room for about seventy-five 
patients. We also have a chapel where 
religious services will be held each 
morning for the poor and helpless, and 
where medicines will be given both for 
the soul and for the body. 



Question. What is the immediate 
duty of American Baptists? 

Answer. To recognize that Mexico is 
our neighbor and that she now stands 
in dire need of our help. Europe can- 
not help Mexico; South America has 
serious problems of her own. Help 
such as Mexico needs can and must 
come from this side of the Rio Grande. 
Some may turn away, like Cain of old, 
and ask: "Am I my brother's keeper?" 
but the Lord makes immediate answer 
and says: "Yea, verily." We must help 
save Mexico. We took from her a 
large part of her territory, paying but 
a pittance in comparison with its worth; 
shall we not freely give her spiritual 
blessings? Mexico has thrown off the 
Spanish yoke; she is now trying hard to 
throw off the Roman yoke; and shall 
we not assist her to secure her eman- 
cipation? The day of Mexico's awaken- 
ing is at hand. Out of the confusion 
which has prevailed for six years a new 
and better Mexico will result. One 
thing is sure: The need for more mis- 
sionaries, more mission schools, more 
Bibles and Testaments, more chapels 
and churches, more hospitals and other 
agencies for the redemption of our 
afflicted sister republic was never more 
urgent than now, and American Baptists 
should not and will not be slow to do 
their full share in meeting that need. 




PITAL, ri"i:i;LA, MEXICO 



The American Baptist Home Mission Society 

23 EAST 26th STREET LIBRARY OF CONGRESS NEW YORK 

SM— 12-'i6. 




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